Half-timbered house
A half-timbered house or house with wood sides, consists of two principal elements:
- a wood framework, the structure even of the house, made up of high and low sand pits, posts, discharges and of tournisses.
-
the half-timbering, which forms the walls and which has a role of filling and stiffener. Roughcasting between wood is made light bricks (risings generally) or materials like the Torchis or the Plâtre.
This technique, which existed already in Roman antiquity, was used in France at the beginning of the Moyen-âge until the 19th century. However, as of the 18th century and during all the 19th century, one plasters the frontages of the houses with wood sides in order to give them a more luxurious and modern aspect. One can still see many half-timbered houses in Alsace, Normandy, or in Brittany such as for example with Tréguier or Morlaix but also in the Landes and with Troyes, one of the European cities where the greatest number of vestiges of the Renaissance remains. réf. necessaire Currently, of the plans of restoration of these houses are implemented in order to preserve them and give again their original seal to them.
Out of France, one finds half-timbered houses in the east of Belgium and several areas of Germany.
Various techniques of construction to half-timberings
Materials used
The house generally rests on a cross wall which protects wood from the moisture of the ground. Sometimes, all the first level is made stones.The filling (roughcasting) is generally made cob (clay, straw, sand, and lime), insulating and impermeable matter. The brick was also used, covered with a layer of plaster to smooth the whole. For the techniques of filling to cob, there exists inter alia the technique of plating (as in Bresse), but also two other original techniques: space to be filled is initially " palissé" (installation vertical of imputrescible wood sections), then cob is mixed with straw in order to obtain the shape of roll which one surrounds around training. One can also make a ball which one places between training.
Technique of wood long
The technique of the long Bois was used mainly at the beginning of the Middle Ages. However relatively simple, it was rather quickly abandoned because of several factors. The posts go up of only one feature, of the bottom of the house upwards. The horizontal parts then come to be assembled in the vertical parts. The reasons of its abandonment are multiple. First of all, much of these houses were built with same the ground, without insulation of the wood which thus pourrissait easily. The houses in long sides which are currently preserved were built with a cross wall, thus preventing the rotting of wood. Moreover, as from the 13th century, long wood rarefies, particularly downtown. It was moreover quite difficult to bring long posts in the narrow and sinuous lanes of the medieval cities. This technique was thus gradually abandoned to leave room to the technique of wood courts. It was prohibited the public highways of the big cities, in order to avoid the communication of the fire on a side from one street to another.
Technique of wood courts
The technique of the Bois courts thus took the step on wood long. One does not use any more long sides but wood more short which facilitate construction, particularly downtown. A post forms a level. This form of construction will allow the development of the houses Encorbellement.
The corbelling
This term is derived from corbel , form old of corbel . The corbelling could develop thanks to the technique of wood courts. This system of construction makes it possible to carry a load in overhang on the naked one of a wall. The houses thus will have one or more stages, projecting on rez of roadway. One finds some as of the 14th century. In the course of time, this technique will improve, which will allow the multiplication of the corbellings. Certain houses could have two or three stages in corbelling.
The primitive corbelling was extremely simple: the post of the ground floor carried the diagrid and widened upwards while carrying the pigeard; the first Sablière of the first stage was directly posed above. This system will evolve to a more complicated assembly: the diagrid rests on the pigeard. There are two sand pits, lower, corresponding to the higher and the ground floor wall of, being used for the wall of the first stage.
Construction in corbelling had several advantages: it made it possible to gain a little place in the stages, but especially it avoided with rainwater running out on the frontage; thus, each stage in corbelling protected the lower stage.
However, progressively this system was prohibited. In Rouen, for example, it was interdict in 1520, with the pretext of " to make circulate air to fight against the peste". In Paris, it was prohibited more tardily, in 1667. It comprised indeed also many nuisances. The streets medieval, rather narrow, were thus even more reduced, which obscured them. In addition, this system presented security issues at the time of the fires, rather current in the medieval cities. Another factor which is to be taken into account is that of the new influence of Italian architecture.
Essentage
The essentage consists in covering the beams, generally the pinions, with slates. It is a durable protection of the wood which is exposed with the bad weather.
(For a protection in " tiles bois" one will rather speak about boarding)
The Gothic house
The type of the Gothic house developed after the Guerre One hundred Year old and 1520. The ground floor comprises sometimes a shop. It consisted of a sewing room which gave on the street, open the day, and which one closed the night with wood shutters. The stages were very often in Encorbellement. This period is besides the golden age of this type of construction, which knew sometimes abuses. The roof with well-established, with firm overflowing, is carried by pigearts. There is a system in addition in order to more easily use the roof. The windows of the Gothic house takes importance. Indeed, they are often gathered by several in order to giving more clearness inside; sometimes even, they develops over all the width of the frontage. The decoration of the house is done more present at that time: any element out of wooden can be carved. Thus the sand pits, pigearts, mullions, cross-pieces, framings of the windows and the doors are carved. The houses known as Gothic were painted, sometimes in tons rather sharp. This painting disappeared during time or was quite simply removed later; nowadays, at the time of the restoration of these houses, they are repainted.
Rebirth
During the Rebirth, we note few modifications in the technique of construction. The principal fact resides in the progressive disappearance of the corbellings, due to prohibitions. The stone more is used; certain houses with wood sides have the first two levels built in this material. The principal innovation is in the decoration, which tends to take as a starting point the Italian decorations: one gives up little by little the Gothic decoration for Pilastres, capitals, moulurations, volutes, cornices… the most decorated parts are the sand pits, windows and doors.
The houses are done at that time more sober. One continues to build in the style of the Bois courts; but the windows lengthen and the frontages are in general more sober and adapt to the straight lines of the general ordinance.
Examples
One finds pretty half-timbered houses in the old man Limoges, more precisely in the district of the to stop S (street of the Boucherie). See also those of the Plumereau Place to Tours which constitute a splendid unit. Also in many streets of Angers or in the small paved streets of the Old Rouen.One should not especially forget the Pays of Trough which is famous for its constructions with wood sides. Even if many manors have a private statute today, the Strassburger villa in Deauville, the castle of Crevecœur out of Trough or the manor of Coupesarte is of the outstanding elements of this type of architecture which one can visit.
In the Bresse at the 15th century houses in dismountable and transportable wood sides were created, without foundations, resting on a base out of wooden called cheule . The wood sides resting on the cheule were pinned. After the wood sides one directly posed the roof and it is only then that the mural interstices were hollow block with bricks or Torchis (clay plated on branches, straws or others).
In Bresse, example of cob which can be an agglomerate of fatty ground low in lime, and branches of red or black alder.
The Porcien canton of the the Ardennes of France counts also many buildings with wood sides and cob: houses and barns, but also a church, with Montmeillant, and Markets with Wasigny, Saint-Jean-with-Wood or Chesnois-Auboncourt.
In Alsace the methods used are close to those of the Bresse, to note however which they are conceived in vertical beams (to support the weight of the building), of horizontal (to place the stages, windows and to allow to retain the unit), but also in beams in obliques (to allow a distribution of the weight, discharges). Certain beams, bring decorative elements representing of corn ears, of the crosses of Antoine saint…